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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. clip — for paper
  3. row — a line
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. clip — a video
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. ground — a position
  11. ground — the earth
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. row — to paddle
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. ground — crushed
  16. clip — to cut
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. kick — in football
  19. pound — a weight
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. bay — to keep at bay

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com